Kerry B.

Considering I had afternoon tea here using a livingsocial voucher, I was pleasantly surprised.
I have had many afternoon teas, including some of the big-named hotels, and this one is definitely in my top 5.
I agree with the previous reviewer – it was difficult to find the room, but the remainder of my experience is very different.
We were treated very well by staff and servers and our waiter was very helpful. We did have to wait longer than I thought was usual for our first orders and for the tea to arrive and the tea wasn't actually piping hot, and was only luke warm by the end of the tea session. However, our waiter was happy to refill with a fresh brew.
We ordered 2 glasses of champagne to have before the tea, and I can say that was very lovely indeed.
The sandwiches arrived first on a single plate, which is different to my previous afternoon tea experiences – normally they're on the 3-tier stand. Once my mother and myself had finished these, we were offered more (which doesn't normally happen if you're using a voucher). We declined as we'd seen what was on the 3-tier stands of other tables and we knew we wouldn't have room to fit it all in.
The stands had fresh cooked scones, clotted cream and jam on the bottom tier; a finger sponge cake (lemon drizzle), an eclair with pink icing and a carrott cake on the middle tier; and the more exotic sweets on the top tier. We had plenty to eat and drink and had to leave two cakes.
We weren't rushed to leave and we didn't have a time limit on the table, so we took our time and relaxed, there were a few empty tables so we weren't holding anyone up.
A harpist played throughout the tea which was also very relaxing.
I haven't given this full stars as (1) it was difficult to find; (2) the room was quite cold and I was rather chilled by the end (my coat was out by reception, otherwise I'd have put it on); and (3) because the tea wasn't piping hot.
I've only had one or two better afternoon teas which have cost 5 times as much (Fortnum & Mason's and The Grosvenor hotel), but I've certainly had worse (Searcy's, St Pancras station), so overall, I think this was a very nice afternoon.

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Considering I had afternoon tea here using a livingsocial voucher, I was pleasantly surprised.
I have had many afternoon teas, including some of the big-named hotels, and this one is definitely in my ...